Week Nine Flashcards
Impresario
N: a person who arranges different types of public entertainment, such as theatre, musical, and dance events; one who presents cultural series; organizer
Example:
theatrical impresario: London’s leading theatrical impresario
Scurrilous
Adj: rude and cruel, and sometimes damaging
Example:
scurrilous remarks
Extortion
N: the act of getting something, especially money, by force or threats
Example:
-He was found guilty of obtaining the money by extortion.
-She’s trying to protect her son from extortion.
Adverse
Adj: going against something, or causing harm
Example:Her policies may have adverse effects on the economy
Asset
N: a useful or valuable quality, skill, or person
Example:
-He’ll be a great asset to the team.
-Knowledge of languages is a real asset in this sort of work.
-His eyes are his best asset (= most attractive feature).
Rabble-rouser
N: a person who excites others to anger, hate, or violence
Example: Johnson was unpopular with the management because he was a well-known rabble-rouser.
Bigot
N: a person who has strong, unreasonable beliefs and who does not like other people who have different beliefs or a different way of life; a narrow-minded; prejudiced person
Example:
a religious bigot
Eminent
Adj: famous, respected, or important
Example:
-an eminent historian
-The commission consisted of fifteen eminent political figures.
Blatant
Adj: very obvious and intentional, when this is a bad thing
Example:
-a blatant lie
-The whole episode was a blatant attempt to gain publicity.
Lunatic fringe
N: the members of a group whose opinions are extreme and different from those of the rest of the group
Example:
Roosevelt attacked the reformers as a lunatic fringe.
Hatemonger
N: someone who tries to encourage people to hate other people or groups
Example:He was labelled a hatemonger and a bigot.
Entourage
N: the group of people who travel with and work for an important or famous person
Example:The star arrived in London with her usual entourage of dancers and backing singers.
Virulent
Adj: full of hate and violent opposition
Example:She is a virulent critic of US energy policy.
Agitator
N: someone who tries to make people take part in protests and political activities, especially ones that cause trouble
Example:It is thought that the strike was the work of undercover political agitators.
Sensationalism
N: the act by newspapers, television, etc. of presenting information in a way that is shocking or exciting
Example:The newspaper has been accused of sensationalism in its coverage of the murders.
Demolish
V: to completely destroy buildings or other structures
Example:Most of the town was demolished by the tornado.
Venom
N: poison; spite; malice(the wish to harm or upset other people)
Example: His diary was full of venom and hate for everyone in authority.
Spew
V: to flow or let out in large amounts
Example:The volcano spewed (out) a giant cloud of ash, dust, and gases into the air.
Plague
N: a serious disease which kills many people
Example: Europe’s population was afflicted by a virulent plague known as the Black Death
Headquarter
V: to have the main offices of an organization in a particular place
Example:
-be headquartered in: The airline is headquartered in Seattle.
-We don’t have many major companies headquartered here.
Discourteous
Adj: rude and not considering other people’s feelings
Example:The employees were unhelpful and discourteous.
Bereaved
N: the bereaved:
the person or people whose close relation or friend has recently died
Example:
It is generally accepted that the bereaved benefit from counselling.
Cherish
V: to love, protect, and care for someone or something that is important to you
Example: Although I cherish my children, I do allow them their independence.
Loath
Adj: unwilling; reluctant
be loath to do something = to be unwilling to do something
Example:
I’m loath to spend it all at once.
